Blue Ventures Carbon Offset is a charity born from Blue Ventures Conservation, whose focus is to protect coral reefs and other marine systems. The subsidiary Blue Ventures Carbon Offset was created "to reduce global carbon emissions and benefit communities where Blue Ventures works." They provide information and run projects to reduce our carbon footprint.
But what is a carbon footprint? A carbon footprint is a measurement of greenhouse gasses that are emitted into the environment due to an individual's activities. Everyone has a different sized footprint based on their lifestyle and other factors. A cool feature of the Blue Ventures Carbon Offset website is a carbon calculator- input your data for household, transportation and resource energy and carbon use along with other lifestyle factors, and their calculator will tell you how large your personal footprint is.
Why does it matter? By knowing how large your footprint is, you can start to reduce it through greener methods of living and by donating (either your time or money) to projects that help offset carbon in the environment. Offsetting as much carbon as you create is called being 'carbon neutral'. If, starting today, everyone were to become aware of their footprint and immediately work to become carbon neutral, we would only halt the damage done to the environment through carbon emissions.
We need to take it one step further. Becoming carbon negative (offsetting more than you create) is essential to undoing the harm already caused by greenhouse gasses. But getting to neutral is a great start, so I encourage everyone to check out the Blue Ventures Carbon Offset site at: http://www.bvco.org.uk/ and get sized for your carbon footprint.
One project BVCO is currently working on is to provide solar and fuel efficient stoves in both South Africa and Madagascar. These stoves replace the existing norms of wood and charcoal open fires, and provide economic, environmental and health benefits.
Read through the site to learn more about carbon offsetting and what you can do to neutralize your carbon emissions.
Another good website on carbon foot printing and neutralizing techniques is http://www.carbonfootprint.com/.

---

---